Book Launch: Heenan Blaikie: The Making and Unmaking of a Great Canadian Law Firm

Event Description

In 1973, three idealistic young lawyers in Montreal established Heenan Blaikie. It would become one of Canada’s highest-profile law firms, counting former prime ministers, premiers, cabinet ministers, and Supreme Court justices in its ranks. It was like a family, according to many who worked there. But it was a dysfunctional family. In 2014, the firm’s dramatic collapse became front-page news.

Heenan Blaikie is the fascinating story of a respected law firm that buckled under weak governance and management. Heenan Blaikie seemed to punch above its weight: bilingual, humane, national with international aspirations. But just underneath its unique culture as a kinder, gentler law firm – as revealed by the author’s extensive interviews with over 200 firm lawyers and legal-industry insiders – lay workplace bullying, challenges for women and visible minority lawyers, and sexual harassment.

This study reveals what it is like to actually work in a large law firm and emphasizes the importance of law firm culture. The book dissects changes and challenges in the Canadian legal profession over the four decades between 1973 and 2014. 

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Speaker

Adam Dodek has been a Professor at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law since 2008 and served as its Dean from 2018-2021. His areas of teaching and scholarship include the legal profession, legal ethics, judicial ethics, Public Law and the Supreme Court of Canada. Professor Dodek is the author or editor of more than 50 book chapters and journal articles and he has written or edited 11 books. His book The Canadian Constitution, 2d ed. (Dundurn, 2016) was named one of the Top 100 Books on Canadian Public Policy by The Hill Times and his book Solicitor-Client Privilege was the winner of the Walter Owen Book Prize. 

Professor Dodek grew up in Vancouver and then went off to McGill where he studied political science. He received his J.D. from Harvard Law School and his LLM from the University of Toronto. He was a Fulbright Scholar and he clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada, the Supreme Court of Israel and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He worked at law firms in San Francisco and Toronto and served as a Policy Advisor and then Chief of Staff to the Attorney General of Ontario. Professor Dodek has received a number of honours including the Canadian Association of Law Teachers Prize for Academic Excellence (2018); the Mundell Medal for Excellence in Legal Writing (2017); and the Law Society Medal by the Law Society of Upper Canada (2015). 

*This event is eligible for 1 hour of Law Society of British Columbia CPD credits.

***Please note that there are two events celebrating the launch of Heenan Blaikie: The Making and Unmaking of a Great Canadian Law Firm.  The first takes place at 12:30pm on Monday, November 4 at the Allard Hall and is intended for law students, faculty and staff.  The second takes place at 5:30pm on Tuesday, November 5 at UBC Robson Square and is intended for alumni and members of the legal community.  If you have any questions, please reach out to us at alumni@allard.ubc.ca.